Movable barrier systems are generally known in the industry. One example of such system is a garage door opener. There are several different styles of garage door operators. These operators are typically separated into jackshaft operators and trolley operators. Jackshaft operators attach to the jackshaft of the door, and are generally mounted at the end of the jackshaft. Trolley operators utilize a rail that is attached to and extends from the header, or the area above the barrier, to the operating mechanism.
In certain configurations, there may be a limited amount of headroom, the distance from the top of the garage door to the ceiling, to utilize a standard trolley type system. Doing so can result in a cumbersome installation process. Additionally, when the barrier door follows the track from the vertical (closed) to horizontal (open) position, forces on the trolley rail near the barrier opening require a considerable amount of reinforcement, including using thicker and stronger trolley rail materials in addition to using additional means to secure the trolley rail such as to a ceiling, to provide safe travel of the door.
Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions and/or relative positioning of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of various embodiments of the present invention. Also, common but well-understood elements that are useful or necessary in a commercially feasible embodiment are often not depicted in order to facilitate a less obstructed view of these various embodiments. It will further be appreciated that certain actions and/or steps may be described or depicted in a particular order of occurrence while those skilled in the art will understand that such specificity with respect to sequence is not actually required. It will also be understood that the terms and expressions used herein have the ordinary technical meaning as is accorded to such terms and expressions by persons skilled in the technical field as set forth above except where different specific meanings have otherwise been set forth herein.